With only a few days left before Rafael Nadal ends his tennis career playing in the Davis Cup finals, it can be difficult to recall how much the athlete accomplished in his early years on the court. His professional accomplishments continued to roll in for nearly 20 years.
Amazing as he is now, his determination and willingness to do his best emerged in his early seasons. In 2008, Nadal achieved a Career Golden Slam after winning his first Olympic gold medal in Beijing. He was not only the youngest person in the Open Era to accomplish this goal but the youngest person in history to do so.
Before Nadal, Andre Agassi held the previous record, winning Roland Garros in 1999 at the age of 29 to complete his Career Golden Slam. Moreover, his prior accomplishments included winning the gold medal at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta and winning each of the other three major events once. Novak Djokovic became the third man to ever complete a Career Golden Slam at the age of 37 at the Paris Olympics this year.
However, Carlos Alcaraz, who is just short of winning an Australian Open title, could pose a danger to Rafael Nadal’s Career Slam record in the coming years. If Alcaraz wins in Melbourne in 2025, 2026, or 2027 at the age of 21, 22, or 23, he would definitely beat Nadal’s achievement.
Jannik Sinner could also beat Nadal if he won at Roland Garros and Wimbledon next year– when he would be 24 years old.
But neither of these amazing athletes would be able to surpass Nadal’s Career Golden Slam victory because the next Olympics won’t happen until 2028.
Source: Tennis.com